In the substance use and mental health world, researchers know that early detection and treatment can greatly improve outcomes. In New Mexico these conditions often go untreated because of stigma and lack of access due to the limited behavioral health workforce. Deborah Altschul, PhD, aims to address these challenges head-on with her New Mexico Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment (NM-SBIRT) program.

University of New Mexico scientists will discuss the power of “Your Dazzling Brain” during a free public talk in Albuquerque next month. The March 15 event takes place during International Brain Awareness Week and will include discussions on the latest discoveries in the neurosicences, behavioral health and speech and language development.

Intimate relationships are complex, fueled by biology, chemistry, emotions, environment and upbringing. Mixing in alcohol with often-contentious issues such as finances, child rearing or in-laws can be a recipe for violence, according to a University of New Mexico researcher studying the link between alcohol and domestic violence.

Electroconvulsive therapy sounds scarier than it looks. “It’s really anticlimactic,” says Christopher Abbott, MD, medical director of the University of New Mexico’s Electroconvulsive Therapy Service. But ECT, as it is known, can yield dramatic results for patients with severe, treatment-resistant depression.

Health workers increasingly treat drug and alcohol misuse in emergency rooms and primary care offices, where they can screen patients for problems, make referrals for specialty treatment or even counsel patients on the spot. It’s a logical approach, given that most people will visit an ER or primary care provider in a given year. But is it effective, and if so, what kinds of interventions work best? UNM School of Medicine psychiatrist Michael Bogenschutz, MD, is researching answers to those questions in two separate studies.